Petronas 2.0: tougher on costs and more downstream

When Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin took over as CEO of Malaysian state energy firm Petronas in April 2015, the price of a barrel of Brent crude oil had tumbled to around $55, half the level of the previous year.

Over the following months prices fell further, forcing Wan Zul, as he is better known, to lop $12 billion from costs and cut thousands of jobs for the first time at Petronas – a major contributor to Malaysia’s budget and one of the country’s biggest employers.

As he enters the final year of his three-year contract, he says Petronas is leaner and better placed to handle a volatile oil market, focusing on costs, high-margin businesses and possibly new growth streams such as renewables.